Real Estate In Myrtle Beach

Merry Christmas! La Multi Ani si Sarbatori Fericite! Joyeux Noel! Fröhliche Weihnachten! Milad Majid! Feliz Navidad!

Merry Christmas!

La Multi Ani si Sarbatori Fericite!

Joyeux Noel!

Fröhliche Weihnachten!

Milad Majid!

Feliz Navidad!

Feliz Natal!

Kung His Hsin Nien bing Chu Shen Tan!

Kala Christouyenna!

Buone Feste Natalizie!

Pozdrevlyayu s prazdnikom Rozhdestva

Hristos se rodi!

A stastlivy Novy Rok!

Z RIZDVOM HRYSTOVYM!

Boze Narodzenie

Sretan Bozic

God Jul, or Gledelig Jul

Linksmu Kaledu

Prieci'gus Ziemsve'tkus un Laimi'gu Jauno Gadu!

Mirela Monte, Your Myrtle Beach Connection                             Proud Optimist!

This is a mouthful of information - but very informative if you own Real Estate. If you are unaware of the Housing & Economic Act or don't quite understand it - Please read through this & refer to the links for further information. If you have any questions or need to speak with us directly, you may do so at anytime.

H.R. 3221, the "Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008," passed the House on July 23, 2008, by a vote of 272-152. On Saturday, July 26, 2008, the Senate passed the bill by a vote of 72-13. The President signed the bill on July 30, 2008. The bill includes the following provisions:

• GSE Reform- including a strong independent regulator, and permanent conforming loan limits up to the greater of $417,000 or 115% local area median home price, capped at $625,500. The effective date for reforms is immediate upon enactment, but the loan limits will not go into effect until the expiration of the Economic Stimulus limits (December 31, 2008).
  View 2009 FHA and GSE loan limit estimates (PDF: 1.9M)

• FHA Reform- the 2008 Economic Stimulus limits will expire on December 31, 2008. Accordingly, the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the government sponsored enterprises (GSEs) have published new loan limits for 2009. Based on the permanent legislation passed in July, the new loan limits will go down from 125% of local area median to 115% of local area median. In addition, the high cost ceiling will reduce from $729,750 to $625,500. NAR is working to make the higher loan limits permanent, but has not yet been successful. Appeals to local area loan limits determined by HUD for implementing provisions of HERA must be made by December 6, 2009.
  Read more>
  FHA Loan Limits> (PDF: 540KB)
  FHA's mortgagee letter> (PDF: 152 KB)

• Homebuyer Tax Credit - a $7500 tax credit that would be would be available for any qualified purchase between April 9, 2008 and June 30, 2009. The credit is repayable over 15 years (making it, in effect, an interest free loan).
  First-time homebuyer tax credit chart (PDF: 98K)
  Frequently asked questions about the first-time homebuyer tax credit (PDF: 161K)

• Additional Property Tax Deduction - HERA provides a one-year benefit that will be available to all homeowners. Under current law, property taxes are deductible only if an individual itemizes his/her deductions on Schedule A of their tax return. The new provision will permit a deduction of up to $500 ($1000 on a joint return) for all individuals who utilize the standard deduction and do not itemize. Instructions will be provided on the 2008 tax return when it is distributed at year-end.

• FHA foreclosure rescue- development of a refinance program for homebuyers with problematic subprime loans. Lenders would write down qualified mortgages to 90% of the current appraised value and qualified borrowers would get a new FHA 30-year fixed mortgage at 90% of appraised value. Borrowers would have to share 50% of all future appreciation with FHA. The loan limit for this program is $550,440 nationwide. Program is effective on October 1, 2008.
  FHA Foreclosure Rescue Chart (PDF: 87K)

• Seller-funded downpayment assistance programs- codifies existing FHA proposal to prohibit the use of downpayment assistance programs funded by those who have a financial interest in the sale; does not prohibit other assistance programs provided by nonprofits funded by other sources, churches, employers, or family members. This prohibition does not go into effect until October 1, 2008.
  More about the seller-funded downpayment assistance provision
  Tips to finding downpayment assistance programs (PDF: 39K)

• VA loan limits- temporarily increases the VA home loan guarantee loan limits to the same level as the Economic Stimulus limits through December 31, 2008.

• Risk-based pricing- puts a moratorium on FHA using risk-based pricing for one year. This provision is effective from October 1, 2008 through September 30, 2009.

• GSE Stabilization- includes language proposed by the Treasury Department to authorize Treasury to make loans to and buy stock from the GSEs to make sure that Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae could not fail.

• Mortgage Revenue Bond Authority - authorizes $10 billion in mortgage revenue bonds for refinancing subprime mortgages.

• National Affordable Housing Trust Fund- Develops a Trust Fund funded by a percentage of profits from the GSEs. In its first years, the Trust Fund would cover costs of any defaulted loans in FHA foreclosure program. In out years, the Trust Fund would be used for the development of affordable housing.

• CDBG Funding - Provides $4billion in neighborhood revitalization funds for communities to purchase foreclosed homes.
  More about the CDBG funding provision

• LIHTC - Modernizes the Low Income Housing Tax Credit program to make it more efficient.

• Loan Originator Requirements- Strengthens the existing state-run nationwide mortgage originator licensing and registration system (and requires a parallel HUD system for states that fail to participate). Federal bank regulators will establish a parallel registration system for FDIC-insured banks. The purpose is to prevent fraud and require minimum licensing and education requirements. The bill exempts those who only perform real estate brokerage activities and are licensed or registered by a state, unless they are compensated by a lender, mortgage broker, or other loan originator.

• Modification of $250,000/$500,000 Exclusion - The sole real-estated related "pay-for" among the tax incentives modifies the $250,000/$500,000 exclusion of gain on the sale of a principal residence. Beginning in 2009, the exclusion, as it applies to a second home (or rental property) that is converted to a principal residence will be allocated. When the second home is sold, any gain attributable to use as a second home (or rental property) will be taxed at capital gains rates. Any gain attributable to use as a principal residence will remain excludable, up to the $250,000 and $500,000 limits. A formula is provided for computing the proper treatment of these gains.
  View some examples that illustrate the application of this new rule (PDF: 27K)

• Neighborhood Stabilization Program
  The Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP), contained in Sections 2301 through 2304 of that act, represents the first time the federal government has focused specifically on the properties and the neighborhoods impacted by the crisis. The legislation responded to mounting pressure from hard-hit areas in the Sunbelt and the Rust Belt, to help them deal with a crisis that had vastly outgrown their resources and their ability to address it.
  Download the REALTORS® and Neighborhood Recovery pamphlet> (PDF: 2M)

To view this article in it's entirety or to browse additional articles, click here: http://www.realtor.org/buyers_and_sellers

What do they call Santa's helpers? 
Subordinate Clauses. 

What's red and white and falls down the chimney?
Santa Klutz!

What do you call people who are afraid of Santa Claus?
 Claustrophobic.

What did Santa Claus say to all the toys on Christmas Eve? 
"Okay everybody! Time to hit the sack!" 

What happens when an Irish Setter and a Pointer kiss under 
the mistletoe? 
You get a Pointsetter.  

Where do elves go to vote? 
The North Poll.  

Why does Scrooge love all of Santa's reindeer? 
Because every buck is dear to him.  

What nationality is Santa Claus? 
North Polish.

What kind of motorcycle does Santy ride?
A "Holly" Davidson!

As a little girl climbed onto Santa's lap, Santa asked the
usual: "And what would you like for Christmas?" 
The child stared at him open mouthed and horrified for a
minute, then gasped: "Didn't you get my E-mail?" 

An honest politician, a kind lawyer and Santa Claus were walking down the street and saw a $20 bill.  Which one picked it up??
Santa!  The other two don't exist.

This Week's Economic Calendar: What is going on with Rates?

This is actually a pretty light schedule for the beginning of the month. The big news doesn't come out till the end of the week. For now the movement will be mostly based on Government intervention along with stock market ups and downs. Here is this weeks Calendar

• Monday, Dec 8: No News today
• Tuesday, December 9th Mortgage backed securities roll to next month. Not an issue
• Tuesday: NJ, NY, PA Triple Play Real estate convention starts. No issues with rates here, I will just be there for a few days
• Wednesday, December 10: October Wholesale Inventories, Expected -0.2%. This is stale data, doubtful it will be looked at
• Thursday, December 11: Initial Jobeless claims, expected +16,000. This is an every Thursday number. Not likely to show any surprises into the market or to move rates.
• Thursday: Treasury auction of $20 BILLION 10 yr notes. Excess supply in the market is never a good thing. Could cause prices to drop and yields to creep up.
• Friday December 12: Producer price Index (PPI), expected -2% and a core of =0.1%. This is probably the biggie of the week. Energy prices have come down considerably, (thus the low number. as always the core is the important piece. an obvious decline in the core may cause rates to drop slightly.
• Friday December 12: November Retail Sales, Expected -1.9% Ex Auto -1.7%. It will not be a surprise to see retail sales in the toilet, The consensus estimate is accurate it is likely we will see steady to fractionally lower rates.

as mentioned above, the roller coaster stock market with its ups and downs are likely to cause ups and downs in mortgages. If the equities markets are doing well, look for the credit markets to sell off a bit. Unless we get a big surprise in one of the numbers, the data will take a back seat to the excess supply in the market. One thing to note: Last Friday Uncle Sam started to buy mortgages (to the Tune of $5billion) as promised. It is expected that they will be stepping-in, in a big way by the end of they year. I do not anticipate that they will dump the $500billion all at once, but the market does expect to see them presence in the market soon. Last weeks Rumors of a 4.5% rate are still just rumors. If we see it come it is anticipated to be ONLY for purchase loans (good thing) and quite possibly with significant restrictions. Time will tell.

 Have a great week,

Rob

Robert Rauf

(732)223-1630 x102

Real Estate Mortgage Network

John Jones gave us an interesting post.  What do you think of all this?

Mirela Monte, Your Myrtle Beach Real Estate Connection

Put Away Your Credit Cards and Give Something of Value This Christmas!

What is the spirit of Christmas?  It's in GIVING isn't it? 

While we have been so adept at giving so much of the useless, we have become stingier and stingier with the important stuff:  our time, our efforts, our involvement.

Who needs another sweater?  Who needs another trinket?  Why not do something special and new this year?  Why not really put some thought into this year's Christmas gift giving? 

I know that while my 95 year old grandmother appreciates any material gift I give her, she would trade it all in for another day spent with me.  Taking her for a walk in her wheelchair, asking her specific questions that jot her memory about her youth, brushing her hair, listening to yet another CD of Romanian folk songs while I dance for her, now THAT would make my grandmother much happier than any jewelry or clothes I could buy her.  That's just what I'm going to give her for Christmas this year.

My sister will love the picture I found going through my old albums.  I am personalizing the frame to accentuate the mood of the picture.  She will love it!  It's a very special moment in her life and it will put a smile on her face every time she looks at it. 

There are so many meaningful gifts we can give our loved ones.  Gifts that say:  you are so important to me!  Look at how much thought I put into this!  Instead of mindlessly picking up a gift at the mall, look at what I've created for you!

From baking a loaf of fresh bread, to framing a picture, or reading someone a book.  This year, show that you really care:  put away your credit cards and give this gift giving business a deep thought!

Let's put our heads together and come up with some real winners!   If you've created something special for your loved one, please share it with us!  Let's make this an exchange of wonderful ideas for meaningful gifts!

Myrtle Beach Homes by Mirela Monte               Join the Optimist Group!

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